Why the Army Closed Fort Ord — and What It Left Behind

Comments · 47

• PE

  @peterchesko9537 · 1 hour ago

  Both of my parents enlisted and were stationed there 1942-1943 and were &quot;interpreters&quot; for the Germans prisoners. PFC and WAAC/WAC. My Mom&apos;s second husband was an Air Force pilot during WWII and he was a manager of the PX there for years While she was an interpreter at Naval Postgraduate School into the late 70&apos;s. <br>There was a lot of military personnel throughout the entire area including the Defense Language Institute. Even as time changed the general community cultures there was still a fair level of respect for the men and women service members. Thanks for the great documentary.

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• TO

  @TonyWilliams-TRL · 11 days ago

  Man i miss that place.....i wss born there in &apos;83&apos;.....(Still in Monterey county)

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• JO

  @josemoreno3334 · 3 hours ago

  My brother was sent there for basic training back in 1970, then was sent to Viet Nam. Thank God he return home. Bronze Star and Purple Heart ( 1st Cav. Div.). When he return, He was station at the Presidio then came home. Good history lesson &nbsp;about Ft. Ord. Thanks.

• CO

  @ColdWarVet-qe5pt · 3 hours ago

  When I was there briefly in the mid-80s for training those barracks looked like they had been built during WW2. They were still very well maintained at that time.

• LA

  @larryohara6513 · 3 hours ago

  I grew up there. Live on base, lived in Marina, went to Seaside High. My Dad retired there. 1962-72

• CI

  @CityDave-hr2kn · 21 hours ago

  My oldest brother (now deceased) was stationed at Fort Ord some time in1967 for his basic training. He was your basic California Hippie when he was drafted. &nbsp;He was going to go to Canada to dodge the draft but our grandmother talked some sense in to him and he reported to duty. My older sister and I took a trip up to San Francisco with our mother. On the way up we stopped at Fort Ord to see our bother who was still in basic training. &nbsp;I don&apos;t know who or what my mom said but we were allowed to see our brother and to have a fried chicken picnic under a large shade tree that was near the two story barracks shown at the beginning of this video. He didn&apos;t look like a Hippie anymore. &nbsp;He had super short hair and freshly shaved. He spoke differently and showed our mother a ton of respect. This was on a Sunday and the guys that my brother was training with where hanging out the window watching my older sister who was 14 and had long blonde hair. At the time I didn&apos;t understand what all the fuss was about. They called me over and threw down a item to me. It was a small silk parachute with a heavy steel washer attached to the strings that they made. I had that toy parachute for years. After about an hour my brother was summoned back to the barracks by a rather loud man in a large brimmed hat. We gave our brother some kisses and hugs. Our mother gave the biggest and longest hug and whispered something in my brother&apos;s ear before he headed back. &nbsp;That was the last time we saw him until he came home from Vietnam in late 1969 or early 1970. He was part of the Nixon troop withdrawals. He didn&apos;t get any parade or much respect when he came home much like the other Vietnam Veterans. &nbsp;Only in his later years did he get the help, treatments, and respect he deserved. We as a family where and still are proud of him for his service. I will say that the Veterans Hospital in Loma Linda provided him the best care and attention in his final weeks at the &quot;Patriots Castle&quot; (hospice), and the memorial service at Riverside Veterans Cemetery was fitting of an Officer only he was a PFC. And lastly we never did find out what are mother whispered in to our bothers ear but it must of been something that helped him get through the rest of his basic training and the time spent in Vietnam?<br>It&apos;s funny that this video showed up on my viewing list. I was just talking to my kids about the time we visited their uncle at Fort Ord. How strange!<br><br>Happy Trails

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• BO

  @bobwoods5017 · 4 hours ago

  Its been 50 years.<br>My girl friend&apos;s brother was stationed there and we drove down to visit him and his wife.<br>There was an MP at the gate who had me pull into secondary.<br>As he approached my &apos;72 El Camino all serious my girl smiled and called out &quot;John,<br>John Bookout you SOB You scared the crap out of me.&quot;<br>He was a few years older than us, but he knew us both.<br>He lived across the street from my parents home when I was just a little guy and he worked at Jennie&apos;s <br>Auto Court in high school. &nbsp;I did the same.... &nbsp;Great memories, thanks for the story.

• AR

  @armadillotoe · 3 hours ago

  I was stationed at the Presidio of Monterey across the bay from Ft Ord. &nbsp;I didn&apos;t know it had been closed.

• FR

  @FrankAcevedo-x5v · 3 hours ago

  General Ord as a lieutenant surveyed streets in Los Angeles. He named a street, primavera, which referred to his sweetheart which he called his springtime. Later it was changed to Spring street that referred to her.

• RG

  @rgarizonahomestead2729 · 5 hours ago

  I did my basic training in 1974 It was and interesting base. thanks for sharing and have a fantastic day

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• JI

  @jimboinsa · 6 hours ago

  Good historical video. Was stationed there from 85-89 as a light fighter. Called it Planet Ord with many FTXs at Camp Bob and Ft Hungry Lizard. Enjoyed all 4 years.

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• MS

  @ms.annthrope415 · 2 hours ago

  Went to Fort Ord several times durinf college army ROTC IN 1980-1982. Remember staing in those wooden barracks. Up in the range looking down to Seaside.